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Homemade wholewheat pizza dough with tomato sauce and mozzarella for a classic margherita

Wholewheat Margherita Pizza

Homemade wholewheat pizza dough with tomato sauce and mozzarella for a classic margherita
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 55 minutes
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Ingredients
  

For the dough (makes two pizzas)

  • 1 and 1/2 cups warm water, you should be able to comfortably dip in a finger (375 ml)
  • 1 tsp caster sugar
  • 1 tbsp active dry yeast
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tbsp honey
  • 2 tsps salt
  • 3 cups wholewheat flour (340 gms) plus a little extra for kneading

For the topping (for two pizzas)

  • 1 and 1/2 cups pizza sauce (see notes)
  • 1 and 1/2 cups freshly shredded mozzarella cheese (170 gms)
  • A handful of fresh basil leaves
  • Salt, pepper, oregano: optional and as needed

Instructions

  • Combine the warm water, yeast and sugar in a small bowl. Cover with clingfilm and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes, until frothy on the surface. If this doesn't happen, your yeast is dead and you will need to start over. Always make sure you're using yeast within the expiry date.
  • In a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the olive oil, honey and salt.
  • Pour in the yeast mixture and stir. Now add the flour and mix either by hand or on low speed using the dough hook, until the dough starts to come together.
  • Knead for about 5 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. If using a mixer, you may find the dough starts to jump around a lot. It helps to finish off the kneading by hand. Though the dough is a little firm, it should be easy to knead even entirely by hand. When you a poke a finger on the surface and the dough slowly bounces back, it is ready to rise.
  • Form the dough into a bowl, and place in a lightly oiled bowl (just use the same mixing bowl). Cover with clingfilm and set aside to rise for 1 to 2 hours until doubled. In warm climates, this dough may double in less than an hour so keep an eye on it.
  • After the dough has doubled in size, remove the clingfilm and give the dough a light punch to deflate it. Split it into two, roll each half into a ball and place in two individual, lightly greased bowls, covering them with clingflim. Let the dough balls rest at least 20 minutes. If you don't plan to make two pizzas at once, place the second dough ball (without resting for 20 mins) into a ziplock bag and press all the air out. Freeze for 3 months, and thaw overnight before using and at room temp for 30 minutes before baking.
  • Preheat the oven to 250 C.
  • Lightly flour a 12" non-stick pizza plate, or place a large piece of non-stick baking paper on the kitchen counter. Place the dough ball on it and flatten and stretch it with your hands to create a 12" pizza, but it doesn't have to be a precise circle! If using baking paper, slide it onto a tray after flattening the dough. It is important to really flatten that dough so the base isn't too thick after baking.
  • Brush a teaspoon of olive oil onto the crust to prevent the topping from making it soggy.
  • Lift about half an inch of the edge of the dough to form a crust all around. Press with your fingers to seal it onto the base so that it keeps its shape while baking.
  • Spread 3/4 cup of pizza sauce onto the base. Then transfer to the oven and bake for 10 minutes. Take the pizza out, and sprinkle 3/4 cup cheese all over it. Place it back in the oven and bake for 10 to 15 minutes more until the cheese has melted and browned slightly, the crust is crispy and the smell is unbelievable!
  • Top the pizza with fresh basil leaves, slice and serve hot! Leftover slices can be refrigerated for 2 to 3 days. Repeat with the second half of the dough. Happy pizza making!

Notes

*Cook time is per pizza. Prep time does not include rise time.
*I used Barilla Basilico pasta sauce here, on a whim because it had no preservatives and seemed as authentic as possible. It was delicious and I highly recommend it! If you want to make a homemade sauce, canned Italian tomatoes are recommended. Simply blend the contents of one 400 gm can in a food processor along with 2 to 3 garlic cloves, 1/4 cup basil leaves, salt and pepper to taste. Blend till as smooth as you like, and strain once to get rid of extra liquid that makes the crust soggy. It's a close approximation of the readymade sauce. If you plan to use Indian tomatoes, know that the flavour isn't quite the same even though the same will be delicious! You'll need 3 to 4 of these tomatoes, with the seeds and excess juice removed, and the other ingredients remain the same.
*You can also use fresh buffalo mozzarella here instead of shredding a mozzarella block, but personally, I prefer the fresh one in salads and shredded one for pizzas because it gets more melty!
*Pizza dough from Sally’s Baking Addiction